|
Scope and Contents |
|
|
The extraordinary breadth of actor, director, and producer Robert De Niro's
cinematic career from the 1960s through 2020 is reflected in his collection of
papers, film, movie props, and costumes at the Ransom Center. De Niro is
widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of his generation and a key figure
in
"The New Hollywood," an artistic renaissance
that began in the late 1960s. He appeared in many of the period's key films: Taxi Driver (1976), Raging
Bull (1980), The Godfather: Part II (1974),
and The Deer Hunter (1978). De Niro has
produced more than two dozen films since the late 1980s and directed A Bronx Tale (1993) and The Good
Shepherd (2006). |
|
|
The papers described in this finding aid include De Niro's
heavily-annotated scripts and correspondence, stage play and photographic materials
from his early career, make-up and wardrobe photographs, wardrobe continuity books,
costume designs, and posters, as well as extensive production, publicity, and
research materials. The collection focuses exclusively on De Niro's
professional career: while some congratulatory correspondence and exchanges with
his
colleagues provide insight into the personal side of his working relationships,
De Niro's private life remains private. The papers are arranged in five
series: I. Films, 1888-2020; II. Plays, circa 1961-2016; III. Television, 1970-2018;
IV. Projects, 1899-2012; and V. Early Career and Career-Related, 1946-2018. |
|
|
Most of the papers are located in the first series, Films, which includes scripts
plus related production, publicity, and research materials for over one hundred films
documenting De Niro's career from the 1968 film Greetings through The Comeback Trail, filmed in 2019. While the type and amount of material present varies from film to
film, there
is not only abundant evidence of De Niro's rigorous preparation for his
acting roles from the large amounts of research material present and his copious
notations in scripts, but also insight into the collaborative nature of his work
with a variety of noted writers, directors, actors, and other film artists. The
evolution of many screenplays can also be traced, often from the original source
material through numerous drafts to the final shooting script. The close
attention paid to the details of wardrobe, make-up, and hairstyle design and
continuity is also evident and particularly well-represented in the production
materials. |
|
|
Series II. Plays contains scripts, photographs, and production and publicity materials
from stage productions, ranging from De Niro’s early appearances on stage as an actor
to the musical adaptation of A Bronx Tale, which he co-directed on Broadway in 2016. Series III. Television consists of scripts
and production and research materials for television productions De Niro acted in
or produced, including appearances on individual episodes of shows such as Saturday Night Live and television movies like The Wizard of Lies (2017), a Home Box Office (HBO) production. |
|
|
Series IV. Projects, includes plays, screenplays, and television
scripts received, reviewed, or considered. These productions were either never realized
or were completed without the involvement of De Niro. The majority of
the works originate from
writers and directors with whom De Niro has long been closely associated
and include scripts for such notable films as Apocalypse Now, The Aviator, A Bridge Too
Far, Clockers, Gangs of New York, Glengarry Glen Ross, The Godfather: Part III, Hoffa, The Last Temptation of Christ, Silence,
and Weeds. This series also includes screenplays and research materials for an unrealized film
project that De Niro was to direct, tentatively titled "Finn." Some of the research materials collected for this project were later used for The Good Shepherd. |
|
|
Series V., Early Career and Career-Related, contains articles about De Niro, collected
materials, early contracts, correspondence, and photographs as well
as materials related to awards, film festivals, public appearances, and tributes.
Of special note are photographs, résumés, contracts, programs, and reviews
documenting De Niro’s student work and early stage and film roles. Much of the correspondence
in the collection is located in this series, often congratulatory in nature or
related to shared projects. Correspondents include friends and industry colleagues,
such as Kenneth Branagh, Michael Cimino, Francis Ford Coppola, Jonathan Demme,
Ron
Howard, Roland Joffé, Harvey Keitel, George Lucas, David Mamet, Al Pacino,
Harold Pinter, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Lee Strasberg, Jack Valenti,
and
Harvey Weinstein, among others. A complete index of all correspondent names in
this
series is included in this finding aid. |
|
|
Additions to the original accession were processed and added to the inventory in 2012,
2018, and 2023. Electronic files were added to the inventory in 2022 and
2023. |
|
Series Descriptions |
|
|
Series I. Films, 1888-2020 |
|
|
The bulk of the De Niro Papers are located in this series and
comprise materials from ninety-nine films dating from De Niro's
1968 film Greetings through The Comeback Trail filmed in 2019. Materials in this series are arranged alphabetically by film title,
and items for each film are consistently arranged in this order: screenplays first,
followed by
production, publicity, and research materials. |
|
|
Screenplays
|
|
|
Screenplays are heavily represented in the collection and are present for all
of De Niro's acting roles. The number of screenplays present for
each film varies from film to film, but most are represented by multiple
versions. For example, Meet the Fockers has
thirty-five scripts written steadily over the course of three years, while
Raging Bull has twenty scripts that
evolved intermittently from conception to completion over a span of about
ten years. |
|
|
Modern screenplays are notorious for their variant titles, multiple writers,
and numerous re-writes, and the De Niro scripts are no exception.
Working with information provided on the title pages and dated revisions,
multiple scripts for individual films have been arranged in their probable
order of creation, although undated scripts and inserted revisions make
definitive sequencing difficult. The films Analyze
This and Meet the Fockers provide
good examples of a complex array of scripts with more than a dozen writers
and derivative drafts. |
|
|
Descriptions of individual scripts in the following folder list are often
limited to the date of the original script and, for subsequent revisions,
the date last revised. Variant titles, draft numbers or other draft
identifications (e.g., "final shooting
script"), and writer names are also included if present. The
descriptions frequently also include either "with
RDN notes" or "no RDN notes."
De Niro's handwritten annotation of scripts is a hallmark of his
working method; rendered in ink, these annotations are primarily dialogue
and script changes and notes regarding his role. Later scripts are often annotated
on the title page with the date De Niro read the script and/or discussed
it with the screenwriter. |
|
|
Shooting scripts are present for most of the films. In most cases, the
shooting scripts designated in the finding aid are the ones
De Niro used during filming. They are heavily annotated with
De Niro's handwritten notes and are often bound in three-ring
binders full of inserted script revisions and production materials. The
Raging Bull shooting script contained a
particularly large amount of inserted material; in order to preserve it and
also retain its original order, a facsimile copy was created and is
available for research use. The original script is restricted from access and
may be viewed only with the permission of the Ransom Center’s Film Curator. |
|
|
Production materials
|
|
|
The production materials in the De Niro Papers reflect the myriad
tasks involved in film-making. While nearly all the De Niro films
contain some production materials, their type and quantity varies from film
to film. The papers contain a large volume of production materials for the two
films De Niro directed, A Bronx Tale and The Good Shepherd, and a smaller selection of production materials from other films. Among the types
of items present are ADR (automated dialogue
replacement) sheets, call sheets, casting lists and
résumés, contact and crew lists, dialogue notes, one-liner
and shooting schedules, continuity and make-up photographs, production
reports, production stills, recruited audience preview reports, storyboards,
De Niro's handwritten notes, production-related memos and
correspondence, congratulatory correspondence, and wardrobe continuity and
inventory lists. Several films also include original costume, tattoo, and
set designs, as well as location photography. |
|
|
Photographs dominate the production materials in terms of sheer volume and
include hair/make-up, wardrobe, and production stills. The prints are
largely in 4x6-inch and Polaroid formats, but also include 8x10-inch and
oversize. Prints have been arranged by roll number and sleeved in frame
order. Frame order is especially critical for documenting make-up
application, as evidenced by more than 3,000 prints for Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. For this film, De Niro
endured a full-body plaster cast used to create a body suit that transformed
him into "The Creature." Shot by shot, the
photographs document the painstaking 16-hour make-up sessions, capturing the
intricate application of face, hair, and body prosthetics in incredible
detail. The Polaroids are primarily make-up and wardrobe continuity prints
and are often marked with scene numbers and other pertinent information. In
some cases, metal rings or safety pins were used for portability on the set
and to retain scene sequence. For the film Awakenings, 135 continuity Polaroids on a single ring record the
state of De Niro's hair and beard for each scene, to guarantee
continuity over multiple takes and reshoots. |
|
|
Wardrobe continuity material is present for more than three dozen films, ranging from
a few sheets for some films to the wardrobe continuity book for
The Irishman, comprised of over two hundred pages. Typically, wardrobe
items were listed in detail on specially-formatted sheets and supplemented
with Polaroids showing De Niro in costume, as well as individual
items such as shoes and jewelry. Because overlapping Polaroids were often
taped onto the wardrobe sheets and presented a handling problem, facsimiles
were made of some of the wardrobe continuity material in the collection. |
|
|
Publicity materials
|
|
|
This category of film material is the least prevalent in this series, and the
amount and type varies from film to film. Publicity materials include
advertising graphics and layouts, articles and reviews, correspondence and memos,
marketing and promotional materials,
posters, premiere programs and tickets, press kits, press junket
itineraries, press releases, publicity and studio stills, screening cards
and invitations, and tour information. Three cardboard cutout standees of De
Niro in costume created to promote The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle, The King of Comedy, and The Mission were transferred to the Costume and Personal Effects Department at the Ransom Center
and are cataloged in the Ransom Center’s Objects and Visual Materials database. |
|
|
Research materials
|
|
|
De Niro is well known for thoroughly researching and preparing for
his acting roles. In addition to articles, pamphlets, chapter sections, and
other printed material, the collection includes 311 books used for research
on topics ranging from mobsters and tattoos to Jesuits and baseball. For
each film, the books are arranged by author and title within the research
section and each book is cataloged with a bv (bound volume) number. Some of
these
books are inscribed to De Niro and De Niro also
annotated many of the volumes with handwritten notes. Many of the books
originally contained loose items; these items have been withdrawn and filed
together. The new location of each withdrawn item is indicated in the folder list,
and correspondence found inside bound volumes is listed in the Index of Selected Correspondents
included in this finding aid. Research material for Cape
Fear, The Good Shepherd, and The Mission is particularly
extensive. |
|
|
Some correspondence and production memoranda are scattered throughout Series
I. and selected correspondents appear in the Index of Selected
Correspondents included in this finding aid. |
|
|
Series II. Plays, circa 1961-2016 |
|
|
A smaller volume of work in this series documents De Niro’s work on stage as actor,
producer, and director. Arranged alphabetically by production title, the material
includes annotated scripts, production photographs, programs, and publicity materials
from productions De Niro acted in, including early roles in plays such as The Boor, Generation, Glamour, Glory & Gold, Kool Aid, One Night Stands of a Noisy Passenger, Tchin-Tchin, and The World of Günter Grass as well as De Niro’s starring role on Broadway in Reinaldo Povod’s Cuba and His Teddy Bear (1986). Also in this series are materials related to theatrical productions co-produced
(We Will Rock You, 2002) and co-directed (A Bronx Tale: The Musical, 2016) by De Niro. Materials from A Bronx Tale: The Musical are particularly extensive, with many annotated drafts of the script by Chazz Palminteri
and production materials including casting lists, calendars, and timelines. |
|
|
Series III. Television, 1970-2018 |
|
|
This series consists of scripts, photographs, and production and research materials
from television productions De Niro appeared in or produced, arranged alphabetically
by title. These include scripts for individual episodes of series De Niro guest starred
on, from an early appearance on the soap opera Search for Tomorrow in 1970 to his cameo appearances playing Robert Mueller on Saturday Night Live in 2018. Materials from The Wizard of Lies, directed by Barry Levinson for Home Box Office (HBO) (2017), are also filed in this
series, and include a significant volume of research materials collected by De Niro
for his role as Bernie Madoff in that film. |
|
|
Series IV. Projects, 1899-2012 |
|
|
Throughout De Niro's long career, a great quantity of script
material has come his way for consideration. The plays, screenplays, and
television scripts in this series are some of the projects that held
De Niro's interest although, for a variety of reasons, his
involvement remained limited. The projects material has been arranged
alphabetically by title. The majority of works include writers and directors
with whom De Niro has long been closely associated, such as
Michael Cimino, Francis Ford Coppola, Brian De Palma, George Gallo, Michael
V. Gazzo, William Goldman, Elia Kazan, Robert Kuhn, David Mamet, Michael
Powell, Richard Price, Paul Schrader, Martin Scorsese, and David Seltzer.
Notable film projects in this series include Apocalypse Now, The Aviator, A Bridge Too
Far, Clockers, Gangs of New York, Glengarry Glen Ross, The Godfather: Part III, Hoffa, The Last Temptation of Christ, Silence,
and Weeds. Series II also contains a significant volume of screenplays and research materials
for an unrealized film project that De Niro was to direct, tentatively titled "Finn." Some of the research materials collected for this project were later used for The Good Shepherd. Approximately thirty of the bound volumes collected as research for "Finn" are restricted from access; patrons with a research interest in any volumes listed
as restricted in the finding aid can contact the Ransom Center’s Film Curator for
more information. Duplicates of bound volumes collected for research were removed
from the collection. |
|
|
Series V. Early Career and Career-Related, 1946-2018 |
|
|
This series contains articles about De Niro, award-related materials, books retained
for general research and received as gifts, correspondence, photographs, and posters.
Also included are materials from film festivals, public appearances, tributes, and
film series; and material that documents De Niro’s early career, including acting
class materials, head shots, resumes, contracts, and reviews. |
|
|
Much of the correspondence in the collection is located in this series, often
congratulatory in nature or related to shared projects. Correspondents
include friends and industry colleagues, such as Giorgio Armani, Lauren
Bacall, Robert Bolt, Kenneth Branagh, Ellen Burstyn, Michael Cimino, Francis
Ford Coppola, Jonathan Demme, Barry Diller, Richard Dreyfuss, Dominick
Dunne, Jane Fonda, Whoopi Goldberg, Tom Hayden, Israel Horovitz, Ron Howard,
Roland Joffé, Garson Kanin, Elia Kazan, Harvey Keitel, John F.
Kennedy, Jr., Martin Landau, George Lucas, David Mamet, Marsha Mason, Al
Pacino, Joseph Papp, Jane Pauley, Harold Pinter, Richard Pryor, Cliff
Robertson, Oliver Sacks, Martin Scorsese, Gene Shalit, Steven Spielberg,
Sharon Stone, Lee Strasberg, Emma Thompson, Jack Valenti, Harvey Weinstein,
Robin Williams, Henry Winkler, Shelley Winters, and Franco Zeffirelli, among
others. An index of all correspondent names in this series is included in
this finding aid. |
|
|
Early career-related materials include many photographs from the early days of De Niro's
career. De Niro
created his own résumé head shots, the earliest of which
lists his acting experience through 1963. This series of photographs ends in
the early 1970s with the appearance of studio publicity stills for films
such as Bloody Mama and Mean Streets. The résumés
attached to many of the head shots, some with four different images per
print, provide valuable information regarding De Niro's stage
performances that date from his days in training with The Dramatic Workshop,
Luther James Studio, Stella Adler Theatre Studio, and Raphael Kelly. These
résumés include the parts he played in repertory theater,
tours, commercials, performances at Hunter College and Sarah Lawrence
College, the off-Broadway shows, and early films including Greetings and The Wedding
Party. Often play reviews are also attached to the head shots.
Programs and production photographs for many of these early plays are filed by title
in Series II. |
|
|
The series also contains materials from events De Niro attended, including the Academy
Awards, Cannes Film Festival, and many other awards ceremonies, film festivals, and
tributes; clippings of articles and other publicity materials; photographs of De Niro,
ranging from informal snapshots to studio portraits; and collected materials, including
books, photographs, programs, and posters. De Niro’s commercial and advertising work
is also documented in this series, with scripts, clippings, and artwork from commercials
and print advertisements spanning his career from 1967 to 2018. |
